Chief Investment Officer / Head of Investments
About the Role
StartEngine is launching a full robo-advisory offering, converting our existing base of ~3,000 Private-fund clients onto a discretionary, algorithmically-managed platform built around a 50/30/20 portfolio philosophy. We're hiring one person to build it: a working investment leader who has personally designed and run model portfolios before, not someone who has only managed a team that did.
This is a builder's role, not a figurehead role. You'll write the investment philosophy, select the actual funds and ETFs, define the allocation and rebalancing logic, and work directly with our engineering team to get it built and shipped. You will also be the named, public face of the strategy — in our regulatory filings, in client-facing materials, and in the pitch that convinces our existing clients to convert to advisory accounts.
Design and own the Investment Policy Statement and the 50/30/20 model portfolio framework across risk bands
Select and maintain the actual fund/ETF lineup using clear, defensible due-diligence criteria (cost, liquidity, tax efficiency, tracking accuracy)
Define the rebalancing and tax-loss-harvesting logic and work hands-on with our existing 14-person engineering team to translate it into working product — you write the spec, no separate team required
Serve as the named investment lead in our Form ADV and in client-facing and marketing materials
Partner with our General Counsel and existing compliance team to help them understand what's different about running an RIA versus our existing broker-dealer and funding-portal businesses
Set the compliant talking points our licensed representatives will use when discussing advisory accounts with clients
Report directly to [CEO / President] with full ownership of the investment function
You have personally built and run model portfolios at a small-to-midsize RIA or robo-advisor — hands-on, not delegated
CFA charter or equivalent demonstrated track record; we care more about what you've shipped than the letters after your name
Working knowledge of modern portfolio theory, asset allocation methodology, and passive fund/ETF selection
Comfortable being publicly named as the face of an investment strategy, including in regulatory disclosures
Able to write product requirements an engineering team can build from directly, without a translator
Startup mindset: you're building this function from scratch, not inheriting a department
A CIO who expects to hire a team before proving out the first version of the product
Someone whose experience is purely institutional or oversight-level, without hands-on portfolio-building work
A pure compliance or legal background — we have that covered; we need investment judgment
Company: StartEngine
Remote-First Company